Hello fiber friends and fans!
I have taken the last several months off to deal with some medical concerns. Thank you all for the notes and prayers these months. I wanted to quickly update you all on that situation. I have atrial fibrillation, and found this out right before I closed up shop for a while. As of now, I am on no treatment course, as I do not fit the “standard” profile of a person with this condition. So for now, I still gratefully accept those prayers and positive energies. While I am happy to share my experience and challenges with you personally, publicly I will leave it at that. The one thing to note regarding my art, creations, and business… this does leave me at times exhausted. As mamas and women, we know dog tired!!! This sort of exhaustion “knocks me out” completely. This has rearranged most of my normal routines and cycles. These spells can hit at any time, and no amount of caffeine or cat naps helps. Naturally, this also means a great deal less output for me as an artist.
In Wildflower Whimsy news: I will have help with shipping on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. If you must have it shipped on Tuesday or Thursday, please let me know and I’m sure we can get that done. I plan on these 3 days for sure, as I know I will have the help. Also, I am feeling the need to burst out from the fiber bubble! These past months of reflection, meditation, and humble gratitude for life has inspired many ideas! Soon I will be returning the yarn and fiber to subscription only sales and in person sales (farmer’s market, shows, etc). This will free up my time and make room for the reintroductions of previous incarnations of my art: clothing, bags, cloth diapers and mama cloth, accessories… sewing more is my hope there! It is my focus now to produce not just product, but joyful expressions of creation. I honestly do not know how often or how much I will be able to update the shop at this time. I am taking it slowly and carefully, balancing it all just so. 
With great joy and anticipation I re-enter the world of art and creativity! It is my hope that these expressions may be a tool in which to handle and thrive through any physical maladies.
Blessings,
Angelina
Between computer crashes, glitches, and holidays, I’ve managed to blog about this months’ club selections: Tourmaline Sun Angel!
dapper little fella, no?
The theme for the first quarter of 2011 has been “The Birds and The Bees”… no, not a lesson in biology, but an homage to the flowers and flighted friends of the Earth. Next month… well, I’m not telling just yet. 
I warn you that I was not blessed with good lighting on photo-day…so here’s what this little bird turned into on fiber:
squishy fine merino wool!
and on the yarn club yarn:
Last but certainly not least, is the sock club yarn:
Peony- superwash merino fingering yarn
These were all dyed in my signature Watercolor Series style… which means the color blooms in sunlight and morphs as you create with it.
As I have a babe sleeping here with me, typing is very slow… so I will invite you to check out my Flickr page for more fibery photos. (see sidebar to the right)
Have a wonderful weekend ahead!!
Live Colorful~
A.
You may have noticed there were no blog posts this week. I would love to tell you that I have been busy in the garden, or feverishly finishing some knitting projects, or maybe even a little vacation with the family has taken my time away. Alas, this is not the case at all. It seems the techno-pixies have poxed me. Anything electronic I touch this week has fallen apart. quickly. Let us begin with Monday:
-the entire mailing list, consisting of well above 500 people, was eaten. Gone! No way of retrieval, no way to contact everyone and ask them to sign up again. Database: fail!
-my printer died. No, not just kaput, but I mean it ate a whole lotta postage with it. The clubs, done before the 1st, are being held up… going to buy a sharpie today and individually address each package. Who does that these days!? The post office line, with five kids, sharpie, and a ton of little green delivery confirmation tickets to fill out. woo boy
-the computer in general! We had almost a straight week of below freezing temperatures! Because of this, it was decided to be a good idea to have rolling black outs. You know, in case we got too warm. There was never any notice of this, so the computer was fried a few times in the process.
this is me. in a fur suit. 
Oh sure, that doesn’t sound like much. I am leaving out the horrific details of how many HOURS this all took to diagnose and attempt repairs. While others may have that gifted geek in the family, I have me. Let me tell you, Atari was the cutting edge in my childhood…. if you get what I’m saying!
I look forward to smashing this piece of …. plastic… printer into bits when I can get a safe place to do it! Don’t believe me!? Did I tell you about when we tossed my serger off the roof of a 3 story building!??! It was so satisfying. (and before you think I have an awful temper… it was over 10 years old and never ever worked correctly. I had the last straw when it crapped out on me on Dec. 23rd, 8 months pregnant, making 4 pairs of pajamas… one a size 14… and had to then do it all by straight stitch machine. You feel me, dontcha?)
I shall return next week to our regularly scheduled blogging….
Oh dear, it’s gonna be a loooong winter (even here in Texas where it’s already in the 60s!)
Many with astute eyes may remember this photograph being the inspiration for my very popular colorway “Froze Rose”… it perfectly captures my feeling today! The world outside, though sunny, is brown and crunchy. Even the evergreen cedars are pushing yellow and gold tips. The garden hangs on my a thread, in hopes the planet will shift once again to bathe in lengthening days and milder temperatures. I know, I know… I am not complaining about 60 degree weather, trust me! I am anxious for all the buds and blossoms to start peaking out from their lengthy slumbers. I do love the winter of course, it’s just odd here in this part of the world. Most green dies off in the summer as it cooks, returns a bit for the autumn… only to be nipped by the bitter cold snaps here and there. (poor Texas has a pretty severe case of ‘I-don’t-know-what-season-it-really-is’-itis. My moods and tastes are so tied to the seasons that it is frequently difficult to ride the yo-yo of weather here. Gimme snow, gimme ice, gimme sun… but just not all in one week, k?
I have been browsing seed catalogs (my favorite!), and daydreaming shifts to weeding and pruning flowers… long walks in the trees and breezes. I’ve started thinking about the girls’ new dresses for the summer… how the boys need some knit vests… the to do lists of warm weather is heavily on my mind. Even this post seems disjointed as I drift into warm thoughts of a greener place.
What are you looking forward to this spring!?
(look for a colorway inspired by this photo next month!)
Friday is blog day, like Monday and Wednesday. I’ve been putting off today’s post… killing time playing FarmVille on Facebook and generally just quiet and sad.
Five years ago on this day, I lost my best friend, sister, confidante, kindred soul… my beloved Jamie. The last time I got to see her was at our mother’s funeral just an astounding nine months earlier. I was too pregnant to travel when the news reached me that she would not survive. (She in New York, me stuck in Texas). Some days I simply cannot bear the thought of never seeing her again… today is that day. If you are blessed with family, cherish them especially today. for me. I am still lucky enough to have 2 living sisters and 3 brothers… I treasure them infinitely more since losing my Jamie. She’s the kind of sister who would bring along her 11 year old sister when she won a trip to anywhere in the world. We went to Aruba. I could go on and on about how amazing my sister is. Instead I’ll just ask you to reach out to your family and remember what a blessing they are. Words cannot begin to describe the missing piece of myself now that she is gone.
I’d like to share with you a dish I make that she particularly enjoyed… which is a little ironic since she never ever liked vegetables all that much. It was the last meal I ever made for her. Eat it and be well. That’s all for today.
CARROT and POTATO SOUP: (I will get this added to the recipes soon)
INGREDIENTS:
1 lg onion
1-2 medium sized russet potatoes, or several smaller red/gold potatoes: cut into reasonably small chunks
2-3 lbs. baby carrots, or large carrots: peeled and cut into smaller chunks
4 cups vegetable broth
few tablespoons olive oil
garlic, basil, and salt to your taste
- In large pot sautee lightly the onion, until almost transparent and limp
- add potatoes and carrots
- add vegetable broth… should almost completely cover your veggies
- cook on medium heat until veggies are soft, about 35-45 minutes
- add seasonings to your liking. I use crushed garlic, basil, and a touch of sea salt.
- very carefully blend using a hand held stick type blender OR use your blender. (it will be hot, please be careful!) How smooth you make it is up to you. We like a few chunks in our soup, but not actual veggie pieces, just a little tooth if you know what I mean
- Serve over rice or with your favorite crunchy french bread.
This is a super easy and delicious soup that can be changed in many ways… add cauliflower, cabbage, or whatever your heart desires after you have blended it.
It’s time to pull out these projects into the light. I have many projects started… and many who have been languishing for far too long. Go ahead and hold me accountable for these, I just might need the nudging. There are always reasons for these perfectly good project to be shelved… some funny, some plain silly. So let us journey into Angelina’s neglected pile.. shall we?
#1: Matthew’s “Mateo” socks:
Reason for shelving: the man will not wind the yarn. Yes, I am absolutely serious. I finished knitting the first sock for him the very night before my 10 month old was born. (just mere hours, actually!) I told him I would knit the other one for him as soon as he rolled the yarn into a ball. The man has one cold foot now, and I don’t feel too bad. I mean, I knit the darned things… meet me half way, right?! So maybe 2012 will bring two socks. Otherwise, he could get used to one cold foot I suppose. By principle, I refuse to ball up that yarn.
#2 Spinning in general
Mr. Tumnus BFL
Reason for shelving: This one is a little silly, true. I haven’t spun since the week after my baby was born. I was involved in a hand spun swap and it went terribly. By no fault at all of my first partner, what I received to spin (and to keep) was a wadded up felted mess crammed into a plastic shopping bag. No label, no note… just what appeared to be a colorful sheep hairball. I fought with that fiber 9 months pregnant and finally finished the skein after having my baby. The stuff bled so bad it stained my sink AND bathtub. (I had to wash it. a lot.) My second partner was lovely and sent fabulous “payment” fiber… but I found out no less than 4 months later it never arrived in England. A whole pound… gone. 
For that reason every time I looked at my wheel or my *ahem* stash of fiber I was just filled with melancholy emotion. Yes, it is silly… but we all do things for silly reasons sometimes, yeah? Well, no more… this one I can fix! I pulled out the wheel and some fiber last week and I’ve been happily spinning away. That handsome fleece up there? That’s Mr. Tumnus, a blended BFL I dyed up especially for the Pulling at Strings club for February. That is next in the spinning queue. And I am so happy that I returned to my best yarny love: hand spun! I’ve even almost convinced myself to keep that Gwendolyn merino/silk/bamboo for myself… and maybe a new hat for me!
#3: Judah’s Wildflowers kimono sweater
Reason for shelving: fear of running out of yarn! I cast on this Sweet Mama Small Sugar seamless infant cardigan with gusto and fervor! I was giddy to find the perfect use for this yarn… and really this is such a fantastic sweater pattern! I finished the neckline and through the increases in about 2 days… last November. That sinking feeling began to settle in me as I watched my 5 oz. ball of main yarn dwindle away: “What if I don’t have enough yarn!?!?”. The pattern reassured me that I did, and I do have a semi-solid for the edges. Still, that fear of <gasp!> f-r-o-g-g-i-n-g kept this lovely little project collecting dust in the bookshelf. Well, no more! I pulled up my big girl needles, and took refuge in my usual spot for the knitterati: Ravelry! After a few kind words from my fellow stitchers, I am confidently stockinetting away to reach my 11 inches from the shoulder. And if I run out of yarn… well, my little babe will have short sleeves on her kimono sweater! It’s not like we’re expecting any white outs here in Texas soon any how.
So there is a peek into my shamefully neglected projects. I do still have that one hand spun sock around here some where….
Come on and be brave, what projects have you been neglecting!?
Welcome to the new blog!
It’s finally 2011. I have so much hope for this year. Many of you have been friends for years, so you know that the last two have been the worst of my lifetime. (this says volumes!) Never the less, it’s a new year! This year I will find my place at home, work, and family. I treasure the past obstacles as gifts of growth and understanding. It has taken me a bit of work to come to this place of peace, truly.
I always take solace in that I am still strong and healthy, with the tools to dig out of any pit with my own two hands. My thankful list of blessings still over flows. I have five amazing children with whom I could no doubt have not survived these desperate times without. I have faith, I have life. What else does one need?
This is my thanksgiving post, and a welcome to the new: friends, future, hope, and possibility.
I will be updating the blog at least twice weekly. There will be creativity, there will be food! I’d love to hear from all my readers… and we’ll have some fun with this!
Flickr Photos
